Khabib Nurmagomedov at an Eagle Fighting Championship event
Khabib Nurmagomedov retired from the sport of mixed martial arts almost 9 months ago
Khabib Nurmagomedov hung up his gloves after beating Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 in October 2020. ‘The Eagle’ revealed at the post-fight interview that he wouldn’t be stepping inside the Octagon again without his late father by the ringside.
Khabib had also promised his mother that the Gaethje fight would be his last fight in the sport of MMA.
Speculations of Khabib making a comeback were rife for a while, but he officially confirmed his retirement on the 18th of March, putting an end to all speculations and rumors.
Since then, Khabib has been keeping himself busy with several engagements. He bought an MMA promotion in December 2020, renamed it to Eagle Fighting Championships. He also began coaching his fellow Dagestani brothers to victory across various MMA promotions.
In a recent interview with UFC Russia, Khabib compared the life of a UFC champion to being in a prison. He explained about the monotonous schedule of an athlete.
Khabib was quoted as saying: (Credits: RT Sport YouTube)
“I think living the life of an athlete is somewhat close to being held in a prison. Because every day he has to do exactly the same thing — train, rest, then train again, then rest. It’s like living in the same mode, at the same pace, not slowing down…Once you slow down, you are no longer a champion. So I have just released myself from this prison in a way.”
Khabib Nurmagomedov was asked recently if he would be one of the coaches opposite Conor McGregor in the Ultimate Fighter. The Eagle claimed that he wouldn’t do it even if he was offered $5 billion.
In an exclusive interview with ESPN, Khabib said:
“‘The Ultimate Fighter’ with him is good attention for him. I don’t want to give him this. I never give him this. Even if they give me $5 billion — even if they gave me the UFC — I never do this. This is good attention for him.” [via ESPN]
Khabib beat McGregor at UFC 229, ending his ‘on-court’ rivalry with the Irishman.
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